UPDATE x 3: Here are some additional bullet points on how the Jim Ross “retirement” … aka firing went down yesterday.

* WWE is calling the Jim Ross departure a “retirement”. Believe what you will but that doesn’t seem to be the case.

* The entire thing stems from the WWE 2K14 symposium in Los Angeles at SummerSlam AXXESS. Right after the event, there was talk that there was major heat on Jim Ross (and Ric Flair) and both could be released due to it. Flair was pulled from a special SummerSlam cameo and they have no plans to use him in the near future.

* Following the SummerSlam WWE 2K panel, three weeks had passed and nobody thought anything of it. WWE sources thought things had blown over until this past weekend.

* The rumors of Jim Ross’ WWE future started back up again over the weekend and it was the topic of discussion this week at the TV tapings. There was talk that they’d be meeting with JR during the week and that happened on Wednesday.

* Jim Ross arrived in Connecticut on Wednesday. Nobody could confirm why he was there but there was a ton of speculation that he was about to be fired. Triple H, Michelle Wilson, Stephanie McMahon and Vince McMahon were the very select few people “in the know”. Everyone in Stamford thought “this was it” for JR as they had heard the rumors over the weekend.

* The release stems from Jim Ross “not reeling Ric Flair in” after things went off script at SummerSlam. It should be noted that 2K Sports were THRILLED with the media attention they received and were happy with the panel. WWE was the complete opposite and were EXTREMELY upset. They had something in mind and it went the complete opposite direction. It all stems from WWE corporate being pissed off and all the blame went on Jim Ross and Ric Flair.

* The company was especially pissed when Ric Flair mentioned Reed Flair’s death during the panel. They were also upset when Flair mentioned that John Cena was a “hardcore drinker”.

* The people who put on the event (2K Sports) LOVED what they got as we noted above. This was not a WWE event. 2K was thrilled with the media attention as they got tons of extra coverage due to how crazy things got. Stephanie McMahon apologized to 2K executives after the event and 2K said they were fine with what went down. There are many people rolling their eyes as WWE is extremely pissed and the company that was in charge of the event was happy with it.

* Things got pretty tense over the weekend as the Jim Ross rumors started back up. Many were under the impression he’d be fired once this week’s TV tapings were finished.

* The meeting on Wednesday involved Vince McMahon and Jim Ross. We’re not sure if Triple H and Stephanie McMahon were there but things ended with Vince making the final call.

* It all comes down to this – WWE was pissed that Ric Flair and Jim Ross didn’t represent the company in the manner they should have. All the blame went on the two of them and both are no longer affiliated with the company. It’s well known that you represent the company the way they want you to and Ross and Flair failed to do that in WWE’s opinion. The fact that 2K Sports (the company in charge of the event) loved what they got (including all the extra media attention) makes it even more mind boggling that WWE wouldn’t just let it go and ended up releasing Ross in the end.

More as we get it.

Also, let us know your thoughts below!

UPDATE x 2: As announced earlier, WWE Hall of Famer Jim Ross is retiring after 20 years with the company.

Aside from Jim Ross wanting to focus on “other business ventures” (most notably his JR’s Barbecue company), we’re told that WWE Chairman Vince McMahon had a role in his departure.

According to sources, Ross and McMahon met yesterday (Wednesday) to discuss Ross’s future with the company, which led to the decision for Ross to retire.

It’s being said that Ric Flair’s unruly behavior at the WWE 2K14 panel during SummerSlam weekend was a contributing factor in his departure. WWE management felt that Ross, who hosted the event, should have cut off Ric Flair when he went off-script and made several controversial remarks in front of WWE & 2K Sports executives.

UPDATE: Following WWE.com’s announcement that Jim Ross is retiring after 20 years with the company, WWE Chairman Vince McMahon tweeted ‘thank you’ messages to him:

“Thank you @JRsBBQ for 20 years of service with @WWE.”

Triple H tweeted:

“Can’t thank you enough @JRsBBQ for all you’ve done for me personally and for @WWE … Enjoy your time, you’ve earned it!!! #thankyouJR”

WWE.com has re-published video footage from last October’s Jim Ross appreciation night, which you can view here.

“Jim Ross” is also trending worldwide on Twitter and many fans are using the hashtag #ThankYouJR to share their favorite Jim Ross memories.

ORIGINAL: The following is from WWE.com:

WWE Hall of Famer Jim Ross announced that he is retiring from WWE today, after 20 years of service, to focus on his personal business endeavors.

Jim has had a long and storied career at WWE, both on the corporate staff as well as his television persona, calling some of the most memorable matches in WWE history as the voice of Monday Night Raw and SmackDown for more than two decades. He made his debut with WWE at WrestleMania IX in 1993 and was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2007 by his long-time friend “Stone Cold” Steve Austin.

Jim has made many contributions to WWE and the sports-entertainment industry, and we thank him for his many years of service and wish him well.

7 Comments »

Un-frikkin-believable, but with modern WWE I guess we shouldn’t be surprised. It’s become more a company of ass-kissing than ass-kicking lately. Good luck with the whole ‘future endeavours’ thing JR, you’ll be absolutely fine.

Depending on the circumstances, I wouldn’t be surprised if JR declines potential work w/ WWE in the future. I could see him using the same approach that Edge is using in regards to doing business w/ WWE in the future. I would imagine that he doesn’t have to worry about finances and he has a few side projects to keep him occupied.

After 39 years in the business, JR has earned a well deserved retirement. Best of luck JR.